Some of these works were exhibited at Pataka Porirua in 2010 as part of the Fine Spells exhibition and Outcrop at Maunganui was exhibited in a group show at Solander Gallery also in 2010

Artist’s statement

Experiencing
the stark and minimal forms of the Antarctic environment has had a profound
influence upon my work. I bring this fascination with geological processes
and landforms to my ChathamIsland experience. This
series of paintings focuses upon 2 iconic ChathamIsland
landmarks.

The small volcanic cones once submerged now rise out
of a sea of purple brown scrubland to meet an expanse of cloud and sky, a
landscape of space and light. Patterns
of light and shade illuminate the land as cloud is blown across the sky. The basalt
columns lining the coast at Ohira are a stark contrast to this. These pentagonal
columns, uncanny in their resemblance to man made structures, rise above the
sea formed by the slow cooling lava of ancient volcanic eruptions, the darkness
of stone evoking subterranean origins. A southerly wind whips up white foam
on the swells rolling in to crash against rock, white on black, horizontal against vertical. One
place reflects light and colour the other absorbs it intensifying the contrast
between light and dark

The visit was of short
duration but this intensified the experience and has forced me to focus upon the
essentials, filtered by time and memory. My intention is to express what I felt as well as what I saw. The push and
drag of brush stroke, the substance of paint and texture, the movement of the
hand recreating the movement of wind & water, the pattern of rock forms, is
the day to day biography of creating a painting. The internal and external
landscape meeting in these images of the islands at the end of the weather report.

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About Me

Margaret Elliot
[Born in Wanganui, Margaret gained a BSc in Chemistry followed by a Diploma of Fine Arts in Painting at the University of Canterbury.
She has exhibited throughout New Zealand in solo and group shows in both public and dealer galleries and has received several awards most notably the artists to Antarctica Fellowship in 1998.
Since then she has had two more trips to the ice as a tutor with the Graduate Course for Antarctic Studies. She is currently working on a series of works based upon a visit to the Chatham Islands and about to start a series based on the Grand South Island Tour.
Margaret primarily works with oil paint on board or canvas but is also exploring the use of mixed media to enrich the paint surface and add dimension to the work. She has recently exhibited a series of etchings and monoprints.